At 1:17 p.m. this afternoon, a victim who reported that he had just been stabbed
alerted a passerby to call 911 for help. Sheriff's Deputies responded to the rear of CVS Pharmacy at the Turnpike Center where the victim was located. The victim suffered from a stab wound in the upper shoulder. Deputies determined the stabbing had just occurred at a homeless encampment located by the railroad tracks in an open area known as "Granny's Field" located behind the Turnpike Center.

Deputies determined the suspect was possibly hiding in the field and secured the area. They used resources from Patrol, Criminal Investigations, a Canine Unit and a County Aviation Unit. Two local nearby schools, El Camino and San Marcos High School, were placed on lockdown as a precautionary measure while they searched for the suspect. The lockdowns lasted approximately thirty minutes.

While searching the field, Deputies discovered another victim who had been hit in the head with a blunt object when he tried to intervene following the stabbing. The fight stemmed from a verbal dispute among a group of four transients living in the homeless encampment.

After a search of area, Sheriff's Detectives and Deputies found the suspect hiding in the homeless encampment and arrested him. The suspect has been identified as Luis Velasquez, DOB 11-19-1982.
Velasquez was booked into the Santa Barbara County jail for a violation of California Penal Code section 245(a) (1), Assault with a Deadly Weapon, with bail set at $30,000.00

The victims were treated at a local hospital for non-life threatening injuries.